The wireless industry is asking that an appeals-court ruling that empowers state courts to deal with lawsuits on negative health impacts of using handheld wireless phones, be looked at again. The review petition, which is officially known as a petition for a writ of certiorari, was filed on Wednesday.

Calling it a case of exceptional importance, the wireless industry in its appeal to the Supreme Court has maintained, “Both Congress and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) have repeatedly recognized that a reliable and seamless interstate wireless network is a national resource-essential to homeland security, public safety and the economic health of this country. This court’s intervention is necessary to prevent the balkanization of network standards invited by the 4th Circuit’s decision, which will, if uncorrected, undermine the ability of consumers to use an FCC-approved wireless telephone in every state in the union.”

The wireless industry was recently taken aback when the 4th Circuit had issued a ruling that such cases can be handled at the federal level. The Wireless industry is contending this point on the ground that they provide national service and, therefore, states should not regulate it on a state level. Before the Supreme Court, industry has refereed to the existing telecom laws that prohibit state regulation of entry into the mobile-phone market.

The wireless industry is now waiting the directives of the Supreme Court on their review petition with bated breath because earlier this year; the apex court had refused to consider the appeal of an environmental group that had demanded the FCC to study possible health effects of emissions from mobile-phone towers.